f faith. But near the end of the book, when Henry is completely powerless, he resorts to the only option he has: he prays. When Catherine is in danger of dying, Henry has no other choice:I could not think. I knew she was going to die and I prayed that she would not. Don't let her die. Oh God, please don't let her die . . . Please, please, please don't let her die. Dear God, don't let her die . . . God please make her not die. I'll do anything you say if you don't let her die. (330)It is here that the reader first sees any signs of Henry's faith, if it can be so called. There is also one other instance in the book in which a soldier resorts to prayer. This is when Henry is injured and the mortally wounded soldier Passini is next to him. Passini says:Dio te salve, Maria. Dio te salve, Maria. Oh Jesus shoot Me Christ shoot me mama mia mama Mia of purest lovely Mary shoot me ... Oh Jesus lovely Mary stop it. (55)In both instances, these prayers go unanswered. This is a vital clue to understanding the religious view Hemingway presents in the novel. In no way does God have a presence in the book; the priest, who claims to be a representative of God, occupies a large role in the novel, but this role is one almost entirely devoid of religion. The priest is there simply as a man, a person Henry looks to for advice. The most enlightening image the reader is given of God is metaphorical, with Henry occupying the position of God:Once in camp I put a log on top of the fire and it was full of ants. As it commenced to burn, the ants swarmed out and went first toward the centre where the fire was; then turned back and ran toward the end. When there were enough on the end they fell off into the fire ... I remember thinking at the time that it was the end of the world and a splendid chance to be a messiahand lift the log off the fire ... but I did not do anything but throw a tin cup of water on the log, so that I would have the ...
